Lobstering in Maine, unlike Canada and New Hampshire, is usually a single boat owned by a single license holder - with the number of licenses limited to 4,600 statewide. The typical boat is a two man crew (captain and sternman, occasionally a `third nerd') which sells its entire catch to a lobster wholesaler who sells him bait and fuel. Traps cost about $70 each with an 800 trap limit per boat. And then there's the boat. So they are small independent businesses with the Republican politics that generally go with that - including a reluctant embrace/resistance to the federal conservation measures that have shrunken (or conserved) the fisheries.
But the Trump years have been tumultuous - the tariffs imposed on China which reciprocated and the pandemic closure of restaurants have had a huge impact. - gwc
1 in 3 Maine lobstermen lands federal pandemic loan - Portland Press Herald
Maine Lobster: Which lobster fishing towns got the most Paycheck Protection Program money?
Maine lobster fishermen got 1,361 forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans to offset the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The amount of each loan is equal to about eight weeks of last year's wages. For many lobstermen, their wages are what's left over after making boat payments, paying crew and wharf fees and buying bait, fuel, and insurance.
While the PPP participation rate was high, many lobstermen lamented the lack of clear program guidelines. Some got rejected at the start because they were sole proprietors, and the application date for that group was later. Others balked when they were told different things about how they could use the forgivable loan so they wouldn’t have to repay it.
The sternmen and deckhands who work on the boat but do not own the business were initially left out of the PPP program, forced to apply on their own as independent contractors instead of being paid from the captain’s loan. That eventually changed, but only after most of the PPP money was spent. Most sternmen ended up on unemployment, according to banks that processed the loans.
